Russians pursue reconnaissance efforts, gathering data for future strikes on Ukraine - Army spox

That’s according to the spokesperson for Operational Command South, Natalia Humeniuk, who spoke at the national telethon, reports Ukrinform.

“It was a little quieter this night, although the enemy continues to conduct reconnaissance, and it is obvious that data is being collected for future strikes, which the enemy is likely to launch again. Because we’re seeing the acquisition of additional parties of Shaheds, and there is also their missile potential in place, and there is an understanding that, achieving no success at the front, having such a mess domestically, they need any type of ‘victories,’ the events they very often portray on their propaganda platforms just after such missile attacks, even without achieving any result, as their another victory," Humeniuk noted.

She specified that the Russians continue to collect data with the help of uncrewed "scouts".

"We even recorded the flights of such a ‘spy’ all the way to Mykolaiv last day. That is, this suggests that they not only study the positions along the front line, but also search for targets in the rear. This scout was shot down, of course, by our anti-aircraft forces. But we carefully monitor the very fact that, for example, in the Black Sea, some warships can carry such drones and launch them in order to collect information," stressed the spokesperson.

According to Humeniuk, the Russians are looking into the Ochakiv direction, the axis along the right bank of the Dnipro, "where they cannot understand where our defense forces are most active and in what way it is manifested."

"But we are trying to work as efficiently and covertly as possible, so that the enemy sees such unexpected ‘surprises’ as in the last day: 10 invaders down, two large-caliber artillery units down, four boats down," Humeniuk said.

As reported, as of 12:00, four Russian ships are on combat duty in the Black Sea, including a Kalibr cruise missile carrier.